The Bulldog

“One percent of hundreds of thousands of cases too much”

Ontario will head back into Stage 2 lockdown based on concern that Omicron, mild though it is, will infect so many people that one percent of those who catch it will swamp hospital ICUs. It’s a decision based on “modelling” that calculates a worst-case world. Premier Ford told people to “brace for the impact” of Omicron.

You have been there before

Indoor dining will be banned and gyms will be forced to close and gatherings will be reduced once again from 10 people indoors to five people, from 25 people to 10 people outdoors, and capacity at retail stores and malls will be lowered to 50 percent. The new measures will go into effect on Wednesday at 12:01 a.m. and be in place for at least three weeks (until Jan. 26) before being reassessed. Restaurants and bars will be allowed to open for outdoor dining, takeout and delivery while personal care services will be reduced to 50 percent capacity (as reported by City News). Ontario moves school online, closes indoor dining and gyms as part of sweeping new COVID-19 measures

Twitter skeptics

There is a torrent of skepticism on Twitter about the government’s decision. The guesswork required by doctors and others to calculate a crushing overload of cases demands an enormous number of perhaps 250,000 Ontarians all sufficiently sick at the same time that one percent of them are in intensive care.

Monday: Fir tree falls on BC couple’s bedroom, killing both

A freakish tragedy has occurred in West Vancouver in which a large fir tree has fallen on a home, crushing the bedroom of the couple living there. Police say the dead couple is Mike Sharp, former president of the West Vancouver Minor Hockey Association and his wife Caroline.

Narrow lot on Greenwood may get narrow house

A couple of years ago we told you about the sale of a skinny 20 by 100-foot lot adjacent to 953 Greenwood Ave in East York. Now Andrew Gabriel,22, an aspiring developer, wants to build there. Keep in mind the depiction above seems to have quite a bit more open space on one side than the lot does. Not to quibble. Garage lot 20×100 for $599k on Greenwood and Sammon

Tap and pay makes credit cards sit up straight

The cashless revolution and easy tapability are working a card payment revolution at many levels. Many new cards from Visa and MasterCard are aligned to an upright look in keeping with the tap and pay process. And Apple wants you to rely on your phone for everything. Everything. But if your cards are in the phone rather than your wallet, you have to hope the phone doesn’t fail.

No finders-keepers as Brinks truck full of gold, silver rolls

A Brinks truck loaded with gold and silver has rolled over at Highway 401 at Renforth Rd. All of the precious metal remained inside the truck. OPP say the armoured vehicle was on a ramp off Highway 427 when the driver swerved to avoid an out-of-control car and the heavily loaded truck tipped. The three guards inside are okay.



Welcome 2022 around the world with some already in bed

Celebrations are underway across the globe to welcome 2022 (although probably some have actually gone to bed). Events in Sydney are seen above and Dubai below. In Sydney, it’s 7 a.m on January 1 at 1 p.m. in Toronto.


Fireworks at the Burj Khalifa

Dubai Expo2020 NYE fireworks with DJ Armin Van Buuren

The City of Toronto’s virtual celebrations will be streamed live from their Youtube channel beginning at 10:30 p.m:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZwUSt2WevE

Full program details for Toronto’s New Year’s Eve are available at www.toronto.ca/newyearseve

Omicron seen as a likely turning point into end of pandemic

Toronto area infectious diseases specialists Dr. Zain Chagla and Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti answer questions on the CBC about COVID-19, including whether the Omicron variant could be a turning point for the pandemic. Of note is the view that raw case count is not as important as the nature of the symptoms and a relatively low hospital admission rate.